Why Archaeology Matters: A Crisis in Federal Funding of Archaeological Research

Tune in at 6PM ET tonight to hear us discuss the recent attacks on National Science Foundation Funding from Capitol Hill.

(UPDATE:  one of our listeners pointed out that the House Subcommittee on Research and Technology is holding a hearing today on the National Science Foundation http://science.house.gov/hearing/subcommittee-research-and-technology-hearing-keeping-america-first-federal-investments.)

Why does NSF choose “to fund research on Mayan architecture over projects that could help our wounded warriors or save lives?”–excerpt from Eric Cantor and Lamar Smith’s USA Today Article

What should the government spend taxpayers’ dollars on?  Although always an important point of debate on Capitol Hill, the economic downturn seen in recent years has garnered increasing attention for an already highly contested issue.  A few weeks ago, the issue reached its zenith when the federal government shut down, unable to resolve the issue.

A central question in this debate is the role of science research in the federal budget and the…